


The Meeting

by asrewrites



Series: Canadian Contingent [1]
Category: Bucky Barnes - Fandom, Captain America - All Media Types, Deadpool - All Media Types, Marvel, S.H.I.E.L.D. - Fandom, Wolverine and the X-Men - All Media Types
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-24
Updated: 2017-11-30
Packaged: 2018-12-06 11:42:02
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,254
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11599923
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/asrewrites/pseuds/asrewrites
Summary: This just crossed my mind one day, it has no ties to any particular story line or time line in Marvel - it’s just me making a story with some characters I like and wanted to mash together. It gets pretty dark.





	1. Chapter 1

Your association with Wade had began when S.H.I.E.L.D. had assigned you to track and monitor Deadpool. You had successfully followed and reported on Wade for 8 months, In fact he hadn’t actually noticed you, it had been a waitress at Sister Margaret's’ who had wondered why she only seemed to see you there when Wade was around. It wasn’t unusual for people to trail Wade, often times they did it to employ his services. You didn’t know you had been made, and Wade felt there was no need to say anything since whatever you were doing involved making sure he stayed in one piece and definitely cut down on his laundry and suit repair. During the last fight he’d had, your assistance in taking out three armed assailants had not only left Wade in one piece but had guaranteed you a favour from him. A favour you weren’t aware of but one he felt obliged to grant you seeing as you were pretty much his guardian angel.

Logan had a similar assignment to yours, although he gave it to himself. Logan was following Wade in the interest of the X-men and out of a feeling that Wade needed to have his ass kicked a bit to get him to straighten up. During some altercation with Captain America and the ex-Winter Soldier, Logan had gotten a bead on you while you watched Wade. Once he realised you were backing Wade up (you were also covering the two other men but Logan missed that part) Logan had made a choice. He hadn’t wanted to take you on, but after watching you pick off two opponents flanking Deadpool that day, he'd decided that to eliminate the distance shooter that seemed to be with Wade. Logan had gotten to you where you were; a few roofs over from where the three other men were fighting and had pounced. He was just going to subdue you and secure you in the building, but when he surprised you, you had flipped over and kicked him in the nuts so hard his claws came out. One of his hands was poised over your side and his claws had pierced through your armour, clothing and body. It was a through and through wound, and you bled, a lot. Your screams had brought everyone in earshot running.

This was how you ended up meeting Wade, Steve and Bucky and blowing your cover too. 

Wade got to you first and fell to his knees beside you. He menaced Logan with a blade as he tried to cradle your head. You kept telling him to fuck off because he wasn’t supposed to know you were there. Wade insisted to the others that they had to help him save his guardian angel – you. Wade hadn’t minded the back up you’d provided him lately. He’d even come to rely on it, and you being wounded made him frantic. He hadn’t really known that Logan a/k/a Wolverine, was hunting him too until the attack on you occurred. It didn’t matter to him as much as getting you patched up did. Wade’s crazed reaction to you left Logan and the super soldiers confused, they all knew or assumed that Deadpool worked alone.

You later looked at this as an interesting way to meet the four superheroes. But before that, since Logan had surprised you with a claw jab to your side, and as your blood loss became acute you fought Wade, Steve and Bucky for all you were worth. Convinced that the three men were trying to finish what Wolverine had started. Bucky had finally subdued you, thanks in part to his metal arm. Once he was able to get you to still, you curled into his body and whispered “Ow.” before passing out. It had hardly been a fair fight though, and you woke up in a hospital room surrounded by the four men and full of morphine. Your first thought turned out to also be the first thing you said. “Well it feels like we already had the orgy, but you’re all dressed so I guess it hasn’t started yet.”

Wade immediately clapped and cheered about how he loved you, Logan snickered, Bucky smirked and Steve blushed a shade of red that you hadn’t seen since. Bucky had gotten you to lay back down and convinced you that there was no orgy, despite Wade’s best efforts to cajole the others into granting what he insisted was your ‘dying’ wish. While the men were there waiting for you to wake up, they had casually exchanged information and it came to light that three out of five of you were Canadian. Once you were awake, Wade wasted no time in telling you this little tidbit. That in itself had bonded you with Wade and Logan, more than the fact you all had all been following, watching, and had attacked each other.

The following day and night, both Logan and Bucky had camped out in your room. It was partially to protect you from Wade and his insistence that yes, there would be an orgy, and partially because they had blown your cover and who knew for certain if anyone else was watching Wade, Logan or the super soldiers for that matter. It had also taken that long for S.H.I.E.L.D. to track you down and explain to the men what you had been doing there. Yours was an off-book project and your handler sent Maria Hill to find you. With Natasha’s help, both women were able to figure out that you were the woman that had caused a commotion during the Captain’s last mission and you were somehow wrapped up with Wade and Logan. Once that was figured out, the brass started to work on what to do with you now that your cover was 'spectacularly' blown.

Once you were fully up and about you were brought in by Steve and Bucky, to the Avengers compound. Wade came along with you, but Logan went on his way to do whatever he was going to do. He wasn’t a sharer, but he did keep in touch with you after that. Wade left within a few days, but before he left he introduced you to Vanessa and the two of you spent your downtime together. Officially you were suspended while the circumstances surrounding your blown cover were investigated. Unofficially you were reassigned to the Tower and were now training under Natasha and Bucky. Bucky was impressed by your way with distance shooting, though he hesitated to call you a sniper. You had never been in the armed forces and had not earned the designation. You didn’t care what people called you, you were good with a gun. You were also pretty ok with knives and had no trouble in what you called 'kicking the shit' out of people, and everyone else called hand to hand.

Your first week in training, you were matched against almost everyone considered to be regularly skilled. That meant you had Nat and Bucky watching while you trained with the S.H.I.E.L.D. cadets. A few weeks in and Steve wanted to train with you after watching you take down pretty much an entire team of third-year recruits. You fought dirty and he loved it, he said it reminded him of Peggy. He hadn’t wanted to say more but Natasha and Bucky had given you more information about her. It wasn’t too surprising that you'd heard of the great Peggy Carter before, but as Margaret Carter, one of the founders of S.H.I.E.L.D. 

Once you put those two things together, you thought slightly differently about Steve. You spent some time making friends with him, getting him to come out of his shell and getting him to share some of his stories. He was very easily embarrassed but he was also a great friend and he loved to swear. It was almost your little secret for a few months, at least until Bucky had gotten in on the action after finding out you were secretly training with Steve when you weren’t cleared to.

Once Natasha and Bucky realised that you were going to take risks, they opened up your training to Steve. Then Sam wanted in on things. Sam and Steve were fast friends you found out and they liked to try to tag team you. They thought between Steve’s strength and Sam’s mouth that they could distract and contain you. In every attempt to date, they had not quite succeeded. It was Bucky that had come the closest to keeping you down, but you had managed to elude that with a kiss.

That kiss had been a shot in the dark. You were fairly certain that Bucky liked you, you were pretty sure you felt his heart speed up when you two got close, but it was the way that he wouldn’t look at you when you were fighting that made you think he might be trying to hide something. You sometimes caught him staring, so lost in thought that he didn’t always notice when you were looking back at him. The day he almost defeated you, you had screamed when he pinned you and his head had come up to check you for injuries. You were almost completely immobilized and took the chance to clamp your lips to his. When he froze his grip had loosened on you and you flipped him, pinned him and kept kissing him. He had growled and then executed a flip that had you pinned down to the mats while he deepened the kiss. You two had started dating that day, and the new training rule of 'no kissing your training partner' was born.

You hadn’t pushed Bucky outside of that, he had some pretty major reservations about being with anyone, and you understood. You didn’t let him chase you off either. It was half letting him know you were there and just being yourself, and half making it clear that you wanted to be with him if he was up for it. Steve had managed to come in for the save a few times, as Bucky didn’t quite understand why you wanted to be with him when there were Logan and Wade and, well anyone else you could be with. You and Steve had gotten Bucky to see the value of trying, even if things didn’t work out. Steve convinced Bucky that you weren’t the kind of person to torture someone over a failed relationship. If anything you’d probably be out there trying to find Bucky someone new. It wasn’t totally the truth, you’d be pissed for a while but you would eventually be the one doing her level best to get Bucky laid, if not into a new relationship.

Bucky had agreed to dating, as long as it was taken slowly. You went at Bucky’s pace and everything was good except that, at first, Bucky had been jealous of the Canadian contingent get-togethers you had with Wade and Logan. He had been invited to them, as had anyone else that had expressed an interest, but Bucky had shied away. It had been Vanessa who had convinced him it was harmless fun for cold weather lovers. He had come to the fourth gathering on the roof of the tower, to find the four of you playing Uno and drinking Crown Royal while you listened to a radio station out of Toronto over the internet. You guys were sharing stories about very large mosquitos, the northern lights, coldest temperatures experienced and at some point, the argument devolved into whether a winter hat without a pom pom was still a toque or not.

Bucky wasn’t sure that he had heard anything so silly in his life, but the drinks were good and the company was nice and you were smiling. He stopped being worried about what you were up to at those parties after that. He also became a regular attendee and soon realised that things were never complete at the gathering until someone was cursing standing on the corner of Portage and Main in the winter time or telling some kind of hockey-related story.

Though he never did fully understand the mille bornes war that broke out at the next gathering he attended. Bucky had been elected to take that game and hide it from the group, forcing your party to devolve into a never-ending euchre tournament that eventually sucked almost everyone in the tower in, at one point or another. Bucky usually played with you, making up one player, as you couldn’t remember the bowers and he didn’t care to learn the rest of the game. Together you were one pretty good player.

Mostly what that chance meeting had brought you were a good team, a great pack of close friends and wonderful man who had carried you injured from a rooftop and into the life you lived now. Bucky was your tether to the world, a world that you had always felt you might slip out of at any time. Now you had a reason to stay grounded, a wonderful blue-eyed reason to get up in the morning and keep going. Bucky had filled up the empty spaces in your life without even trying and you were fine with it. It was nice to feel whole. It was nice to know that you hadn’t lost everything to your job.

After your training and evaluation with the team, you were sent out on a few missions. You were mostly paired with Nat or Steve. The idea being that their jobs would require your skills more than anyone else’s. You were a good complimentary team member, but you weren’t always needed and you were never sent anywhere with Bucky. You figured it was because he was a well-known sharpshooter and since the idea generally wasn’t to pick off targets at a distance, sending two distance shooters together was not a useful allocation of resources. Bucky was pretty certain it was also to cut down on fraternization within the team, as he insisted Tony called it. Only knowing Tony a casually, it sounded odd but unlikely that he would say something like that. Especially to Bucky, as those two had an uneasy past and tensions often ran high between them.

Not too long after you joined the team, Bucky, Steve and Tony went out on a mission and it took longer and seemed to be worse than anyone had anticipated. Steve, Bucky and Tony had returned and spent two days in the infirmary being rehydrated and having their wounds tended. Bucky had tried to ban you from seeing him, but you weren’t staying away. The day shift was good enough to keep you at bay, but the evening shift was easier to get around and he woke up to find you snuggled up behind him in his bed. He tried to get you to leave, but you wouldn’t and he wasn’t able or ready to fight you on it. He found that he was really happy that you there and it was the first time he realised that the two of you had something truly special.

The next day he was discharged and you helped him and then Steve back to their rooms. Bucky was fine all day, he seemed to enjoy having you around but he got very agitated the later it got in the evening and tried to get you to leave. He refused to let you spend the night and you thought that maybe it was some 1940’s chivalry you were trying to fight. You started to really doubt that when you asked him to come and stay in your room instead, and he refused just as vehemently. You had your suspicions about what was going on with him but none of them were confirmed for you until 3 am.

For some reason you woke up at that time. There didn’t seem to be any reason for it, no loud or unusual noises, no desperate need to pee, no bad dreams, nothing that you could put your finger on. After going to the bathroom anyhow, you grabbed your robe and walked quietly to Bucky’s room. His door was open but he wasn’t there. You didn’t want to panic, so you decided to have a look around for him to keep yourself calm. You went to Steve’s door and listened. You thought you could hear Steve snoring, but maybe you were imagining it. There definitely wasn’t any light on or anyone talking, so you moved on. You went through the common room, checked the training room and were starting to get worried after a pass through the garage left you wondering where the hell Bucky was.

You decided to try the roof; if he wasn’t there he might not even be in the building and you had no idea of where to even start looking for him if that was the case. You went back to your room, slid on some slippers and grabbed a fluffy throw to use if you stayed up there wondering where your man was. You had barely even come out of the door when you saw his silhouette at the edge of the building. He was sitting there, wearing just a shirt and pyjama pants you noted as you got closer. He was sitting in the one spot where the roof just ended and there was no gate or raised edge. You went over and sat down behind him, wrapping your legs around his waist and the fluffy blanket around his back.

You leaned your head over his shoulder and looked out at what he was facing. It was dark, yet there were some stars peeking through the city’s light pollution at this height. Bucky put his hands on your thighs and sighed as he relaxed against your warmth. “What are you doing here sweetheart?”

“Looking for my beau. Have you seen him?”

“What’s he look like, this beau?”

“Oh he’s tall, handsome as hell too. Dark hair, bright eyes, winning smile. He’s not perfect, he can be crabby or take a temper now and then, but he’s all mine.”

Bucky chuckled and squeezed your leg. He shook his head. “I am all yours. No matter how I try to fight it.”

“Then don’t fight it Bucky, just let it be.”

“I can’t.”

“Why?”

“Because I could hurt you. I could kill you, and you wouldn’t have a chance. I couldn’t live with myself.” He said, voice shaking and body tense as he pulled away.

“You’re afraid that you’re going to kill me all the time or just at night?”

“I dream about losing you, I have nightmares and I hurt people in them, during them. It’s worse after bad missions.”

“And this one was bad.” You sighed and leaned against his back, laying your head along his shoulder blade. You could hear his heart beating and his uneven breathing. He was upset, you knew from the curve of his back, the way he held his head, the feel of his muscles. He stiffened like he wasn’t going to let you hold him but you weren’t going to leave him either. You rubbed his back and pulled the blanket closer to him.

“I’m not going to jump you know.” he rumbled out, his voice thick with emotion.

“I know Bucky. I’m still not leaving.”

“You’ll freeze.” he insisted.

“I have slippers, a robe, a blanket and a super soldier. Plus I’m Canadian. I’ll be fine. You can’t even see your breath out here.” You placated him, rubbing small circles on his back with one hand as the other held the blanket to him.

He sighed and leaned back, you resumed holding him as you had been before. “You’re a pain in the ass, you know that?”

“I’ve heard something about that yea,” you said as you kissed his neck. He shivered and gripped your thigh again.

“You aren’t afraid?”

“All the time, of so many things, but not of you Bucky. I’m taking my chances I know, but that’s what you do when you want someone in your life. You take a chance on them.”

“You should be careful what you wish for doll. It isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, getting what you want.”

You held him tighter and put your head on the top of his shoulder. He sighed and you turned your head to face his neck, to be sure he heard you. “I never wished for you. You just showed up. Now I don’t know what I would do if you were gone. I don’t understand it Bucky, but you mean something to me that no one else does. I hope every day that you are happy and I will do anything I can to make that happen. No matter what you choose, even if it hurts.”

“Careful doll. It almost sounds like you love me.” He said and pushed you backwards. He stood up and helped you to your feet then made you step back a few paces. He stood still in front of you, and the bad light made it impossible for you to see his face. He reached out and pulled you to him in a crushing hug and you giggled, relieved that he wasn’t going to read you the riot act or list off more reasons why you should get lost.

“Bucky?”

“Hmmm.” You felt that sound rumble through his body and you smiled. He was just enjoying the hug, and that was a step in the right direction.

“Let’s go to bed. You’re cold and I won’t hear the end of it if I let you freeze to death out here.”

He chuckled and kissed the top of your head. He grabbed the blanket from you and wrapped it around himself, then took your hand. “Lead on doll. I’m all yours.”


	2. The Meeting - Bucky's POV

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The character's first meeting told from Bucky's perspective.

Life is different now and Bucky knows it. He knows that he has Steve, that he loves Steve and Steve loves him. They are family. They link each other to the past and help each other through the present. No one really knows what the future holds. If they did, hell if he had known back then he wouldn't have let himself live. As it was, both he and Steve had become products of advanced science. Steve being continuously frozen for 70 years while Bucky had been frozen on and off in that time. When Steve discovered Bucky was alive he had moved heaven and earth to find him and then he had dragged his friends into the fray. For Bucky, Steve had given up his life, his place in the world; he had lost friends and comfort and he was ready to do whatever that he had to do to keep Bucky safe and free.

It tears Bucky up that Steve would care for him so much. Often times he doesn't remember himself, his own name or Steve’s. He could barely recall anyone else’s name for quite some time but they have fixed that. Steve took all the fugitives who fought with him to save Bucky, to Wakanda, where the King offered safe haven and help to find a way to release Bucky from the mind control that he spent the better part of a century trying futilely to resist. Eventually, Wanda and Shuri, the pretty young girls, had used their magic and science to give Bucky back his own mind. He isn’t sure that he can ever really thank them for that or, some days if they even deserve thanks.

Bucky’s mind is free, but he isn’t. He can’t go where he wants to or do what he decides because he’s still an experiment. He was allowed to come back to the States with Steve and the rest of the people who wanted to return to the tower. The team is allowed to call itself the Avengers privately. Just as the organization that replaced S.H.I.E.L.D. calls itself that internally. The new entities have no formal designations so using organization or group formerly known as was just shortened back to the original names. Bucky doesn't care what the thing is called, he is now able to participate or not as their asset, but he is still an ‘asset’. He is still working for someone else. He isn’t really free and he might never be, but at least he is with Steve.

Bucky hates himself most days, hates his life before with Hydra and hates how he is a ruined partial person now. But he works to be better. He doesn't know what else to do. Steve wants him to be better. Steve needs him to achieve some semblance of normality. So Bucky works hard to give the only person that he still knows, that still matters in his life, something to hold onto. Bucky clings to the idea that he can one day be free, rest and relax and not have to fight anyone or anything again; just as fiercely as Steve holds onto the idea that Bucky will be himself again. Carefree, cocky, smooth and good with the ladies; that’s the Bucky Steve is looking for. Bucky has no idea what any of that means anymore. That is all a truly foreign set of skills to him now. He can crack a smile, but often it is only in response to someone else’s. 

Life isn’t as easy for him now, as someone whose mind was erased out of hand and on a whim. His life now is a struggle with a mind that isn’t too reliable. Sometimes he thinks he remembers things, but they turn out to be events that he didn't participate in or had read of or just dreamt. Other times he is sure he has dreamt something only to find out that it has actually happened to him. Bucky is glad that Steve is around, someone that he trusts, who he knows in his bones would always tell him the truth. He needs that now.

Bucky keeps pretty busy most days. Training, medical and psychological evaluations and field operations. That’s where he is now, following Steve through an alley looking for some guy in a red suit who uses swords to defeat – well sometimes it's criminals and sometimes it isn’t. Bucky is hardened to this, being out on a mission. Sometimes he even gets point. This time Steve is on point and they are kind of just standing around waiting for the target to stop fighting with the group of ruffians he’s run into when the screaming starts.

The target, who to be honest never seems to stop talking, is now swearing and chopping people up like a chef julienne-ing vegetables. Steve takes off to help him, but Bucky is galvanized by the sound of that scream. It pierces through him and hurts him so deeply that he takes off to find the source of the howls. Steve sees him leave and follows, dragging the person that they had been trailing along with him. The man in the red suit has pretty much eliminated the men that tried to attack him, so he lets himself be taken off in the direction of the screams.

It takes longer than he likes, but Bucky arrives on the rooftop just slightly ahead of Steve and his tag along. Bucky can't really understand what he is seeing. On the ground is a woman, she’s screaming and thrashing. Over her stands a large man, he has metal coming out of his hands and he is sort of leaning forward. The metal parts from his hands look like long knives, maybe swords? He may be trying to calm the woman, who is frantic and cursing a blue streak. She kicks and spits at the man above her, even as Bucky and Steve approach. The man that they have been watching passes them now hollering about his angel. He falls to his knees as he reaches her and tries to take her head in his lap while brandishing a sword at the man with the hand swords. Bucky has decided that that’s what those things sticking out of the big guy’s hands and into her on one side are; swords.

“Fuck off Wade,” growls the big guy as the woman thrashes. “Easy sweetheart, I can’t get these out safely until you settle down. I’m not sure that I should take them out at all. Fuck they went straight through.” The big guy leans a little to the left and it becomes apparent that the big guy was holding a knife at some point. That knife is now protruding from the screeching woman’s torso and comes into view as she turns with the big guy, having no real choice in the matter if she didn't want to be sliced through.

“Dammit Logan what the fuck are you doing here? Killing my guardian angel? Aren’t there some trees you could be sharpening your claws on somewhere? Doesn’t Xavier have something for you to do?”

“I’m here for you fuckhead. You need to learn to stop attacking random people.”

“Jesus fuck, Fury,” she mutters as she glares at Wade. Bucky wonders if she’s mad that Wade is there, or about what happened; or just in general. Wade and Logan (the big guy) don’t seem to of heard her and continue to argue.

“Oh ho ho, you should talk Logan. You’re tips deep in an innocent woman here not me. Pot, kettle, black!”

Bucky watches this exchange with a calmness he isn’t used to. Usually, this kind of situation would have his adrenaline pumping, his breath quickening and some narrowing of his focus. None of that is happening now. He notices that even Steve seems relaxed as he speaks into the comm getting the Quinjet brought around. Bucky looks at the other two men, aside from the volume of their exchange they’re both breathing normally and seem less than stressed about the poor woman who is still flailing around. She has stopped screaming but Bucky isn’t certain that that is a good sign. There is a lot of blood, and her colour isn’t good. Bucky steps closer, as does Steve.

“Just hold her still Wade, so we can get her to a hospital, or at least dress her wounds. Stop the blood loss,” Logan growls as he tries to grab a hold of the foot she’s now kicking at him with. She keeps mumbling Fury and god no, but no one seems to be listening to her. Bucky wants to ask her questions but he can tell that she’s probably not going to be too helpful by the way her eyes are wildly rolling around from man to man around her.

Bucky moves forward to help secure the injured woman, but Steve beats him there. The big guy, Logan, nods at Bucky motioning towards the blanket underneath the woman. “Pull it out, we can shred it and use it to dress her wounds.”

Bucky moves along the woman’s right side. She’s trying to get her legs free of Steve’s grasp now but otherwise is still. Wade is firmly holding her shoulders down. Bucky grabs the blanket and tugs it out from under her a bit, lifting it in the process. Before it registers that he has seen this, Logan’s hand flashes down, his hand swords (claws?) tearing the blanket in three strips which are now the only thing in Bucky’s grasp. He starts folding two of them up to use on either side of the stab wounds, figuring that the third one can be used to secure the others in place. He doesn’t have a lot of battlefield medicine, but Bucky's fairly certain it’s the best that they can accomplish as all the men, except Logan, are wearing tactical gear; which isn’t great for shredding for bandages. Logan has civilian clothes on if needed Bucky wouldn't hesitate to ask Logan for his shirt. He doesn't really feel like trying to take anything from a guy with swords hidden in his hands.

He walks calmly back around to the woman’s left side and he crouches beside her then nods to Logan whose hand doesn’t move, but Bucky can see the sword/claws retracting. He follows them with the wadded strip and presses it to her side as she shudders and goes still. It’s harder for Bucky to tell when to settle the other wadded strip, but almost as soon as he does Logan grabs the last strip and is tying it around her waist to secure the makeshift bandages in place. Bucky sees her stiffen, but before he can say anything she kicks out, knocking Steve and Logan on their asses, she then reaches up with a shriek and slams her hand into Wade’s face. Bucky hears a sickening crack and Wade goes still, leaning forward onto her. She’s kicking out blindly and scratching at Wade’s head. She gets half his hood off before Steve gets her hands secured. She’s gouged large stripes into Wade’s face and Steve is hissing about Wade missing an ear.

Logan curses and growls as he pulls Wade away and Bucky lays gingerly across the woman’s legs, propping himself up on one arm to try to keep the pressure off her wounded side. She’s definitely pissed and is still trying to move while Bucky and Steve exchange looks. The sound of the Quinjet approaches and a plan is hatched. Quickly Bucky pulls back, wrapping his metal arm around her and bringing her up with him. Steve moves back out of range. She fights weakly but doesn’t kick or scratch at Bucky. He looks down at her as he takes a step back, she’s not in good shape but he gets the feeling she is ready to fight and just looking for any opening that she can find.

“We’re going to get you some help miss, that sound is our jet and it’s going to take us, all of us, to a doctor.” She breathes a bit harder as she turns her head to look up at him and he wonders if it’s fear or exertion that’s speeding her breathing. She blinks at him so slowly, he’s surprised that she hasn’t passed out since she’s white as a sheet and even turning her head seems to take a colossal effort. Her head lolls to the side and Bucky automatically picks her up and cradles her to his chest. She mumbles Ow as she curls against him and goes still.

Bucky turns and makes his way to the Quinjet, which hovers just above the building with its ramp lowered to the roof for them to use. Bucky can hear Steve and Logan gathering up the gear from the rooftop. Logan is grumbling about how useless Wade is right now. They all get onto the plane and Bucky carefully lowers the woman onto the waiting gurney while Logan and Steve drop Wade and the woman’s gear in a corner by the ramp. Steve walks over and as a precaution, slides restraints onto her arms and legs while Bucky moves to hold her head and Bruce takes over the medical triage. Her eyes flicker up to Bucky and she looks so sad, he leans in to hear what she is trying to say as her mouth keeps working but even with his hearing he can’t understand her.

“..kill me...” she finally breathes, her eyes roll back into her head as she goes limp and Bruce works harder on getting her punctures closed. He’s already set up an i.v. but Bucky isn’t sure if its blood loss, sedatives or something else that has knocked her out. He’s worried about her words. Were they part of a sentence or an actual request? Does she know who he is? If she really wanted to die, why fight all of them so hard? Steve comes over after a bit, mostly to check on Bucky but also to wonder about how calm everyone seems to be. Bruce is commenting on how he isn’t worried about anything at the moment, which is unlike him. He is usually in full concern mode whenever anyone is as bad off as this lady is. Tony, normally quite talkative at the best of times, is quiet and keeps saying he feels so mellow. Bucky knows it’s her, she is making them calm, well beyond calm now judging by the seemingly slightly drugged states of Bruce and Tony. 

When Bruce is done patching her wounds and leaves to check on Logan, Bucky sits in the jump seat closest to her and holds her hand. He wonders if he is comforting her or himself more with the action. If she is relaxing everyone, maybe she can't control it in her present condition. Maybe by comforting her the effect can be lessened? Bucky isn’t sure but he does feel better holding her hand. Her pulse is still there, not too strong nor too weak; and she isn’t too cold. Bruce quizzes Logan on his hand swords and is told that they are claws, bone reinforced by adamantium. Tony wants to know if Logan has ever tried cutting through vibranium with them and Bucky shudders just a bit. 

Steve notices, but then again Steve can't keep his eyes off Bucky as he hovers over their wounded guest. Steve too feels the odd calmness and is wondering if it is her or something else as he stands by her feet. Logan approaches and says.”It’s her, she’s calming us.” Steve looks at Logan then to Bucky who nods. Bruce comes closer and runs a hand through his hair.

“It’s lessened since she’s stabilized. It might be some kind of fight or flight response that she can’t control. It seems localized to just us, so presumably, it’s not long range. I’d go with it being something that she can’t direct effectively. Possibly stress-induced.”

“Thanks doc.” Logan snarks and Bucky hears a rustling and a thump before he turns his head and sees Wade stumble over to the first reflective surface in sight. Logan growls and Steve and Bruce follow his stare to Wade.

“I thought he was dead!” Bruce steps back in shock as Wade approaches. His nose appears to be working its way back into place, he has gashes in his face that are lessening and his ear seems to be regrowing Bucky notes as Wade swears at his appearance before shuffling over to them.

“Son of a bitch, she Mike Tysoned me!” Wade wheezes as he approaches the gurney. His voice is all high pitched and nasally and Bruce looks kind of sick. Tony calls back to find out what’s happening, but no one is answering him.

“Bullshit,’ Logan snarls, “She clawed your ear off nice and clean. She didn't bite you at all.” Bruce is looking between the two men and backing away slowly. He eventually disappears into the seat beside Tony, telling him in hushed tones about how the dead guy is alive again and isn’t it all getting a bit much with all the powers that kept popping up. All four men, Bucky, Wade, Steve and Logan, stand around the unconscious woman, guarding her until the jet lands.

They all follow her as she is offloaded by the medical team that is waiting for them. Not a one will leave until they are informed that she is stable and they outlook is good for her recovery. Bruce tries to shoo them off, but not a one will leave. With four permanent visitors, it is decided that she will be left in the recovery area to afford people the ability to sit and wait with her, and one or more the use of the other bed in the area. Each man takes a turn in getting food and coffee, getting stopped and asked to give a report. Eventually, each man has given a full debrief, but no one has been told her name or anything about her.

Bucky stays on the left side of her bed. He has staked it out since the beginning. Steve has the upper right side, Wade wanders and Logan sits at the foot of her bed, glowering. Aside from Bucky, who holds her hand more often than not, no one but the medical team touches her. She doesn’t move much, which they are told is because of the sedation, but sometimes she makes little noises. Everyone notices that Bucky’s voice seems to calm her the most, Wade spends some time trying to mimic it but gives up. 

The vigil is entering it’s fourth day when Helen Cho, the Chief of Medicine appears. She asks everyone to leave but Wade and Bucky don’t want to. Steve tries to convince Bucky to go and Logan threatens Wade as Dr. Cho looks on. 

“If you know something why don’t you just tell us? She’s all alone, it’s not right to leave her all alone.” Bucky pleads with Steve and Dr. Cho. As his sentence dies in strides Nick Fury.

“Alright, listen up, she is in our care and she needs to get some quality rest alone.”

“Director,” Steve nods at the man in the long leather trench coat and Bucky wonders how much of a problem defying this order will be even as Steve and Logan pull Wade from the room. Fury turns to him and Bucky wonders if this is the Fury she mentioned. Did she know the director? Fury cocks his eyebrow at him and Bucky squares his jaw.

“Soldier?”

“Director.” Bucky looks to the woman again, he is standing but he still holds her hand. Fury notices and clears his throat to regain Bucky’s attention.

“Seargent Barnes you don’t have to worry. She is going to be well taken care of. She will be back up and around in no time, Dr. Cho assures me.”

“She shouldn't be alone. It’s not right,” Bucky mumbles, placing her hand gently on the blanket by her side.

“She won’t be for long. As soon as she’s weaned off the sedatives and wakes up on her own she can have visitors. You all can come back in. But until that time you and the others will not come in this room. You won’t be allowed past the hall. Understand?”

Bucky looks to Fury and sees no malice in the man’s face but he doesn’t like leaving her alone. Even though that overwhelming calm feeling has died down to nearly non-existent levels, he feels better around her. He isn’t sure why he doesn’t know her at all. Yet since her screams had pierced him and brought him to her, he has been affected by her and unable to stay away. He knows it isn’t sensible, she will get better and leave not having any idea of his feelings of connection to her, but until that time he wants to be close. Fury moves and Bucky steps away towards the door.

“I’ll be right outside,” he says as he leaves. Fury watches him go wondering why that sounds like a threat.

Bucky notices that Fury stays exactly two more seconds, then leaves. He nods at the men now lining the hall. Steve nods to him and Fury shrugs as he passes. Bucky wonders if this means there will eventually be some information for them about who she is and what led her to the roof where she was stabbed.

The hall is cramped with four large men in it, but no one wants to leave. Logan keeps extending and retracting his claws with the accompanying noise that makes. Wade talks to himself, he’s mostly quiet but it can be unnerving and Steve keeps moving away from him when he paces. For the most part, Bucky stands, he has lots of practice standing for hours. He’s sort of having a small competition with the others in his mind. It’s something to think about besides how scared she might be waking up alone in a strange room. Wade is lying on the floor within a few hours. A few hours later Steve and Logan start squatting to relieve the stress in their back and legs. When Wade starts snoring Bucky squats and Logan and Steve are sitting on the floor trying to entertain themselves while they wait.

Bucky closes his eyes. He has excellent hearing and closing his eyes only seems to increase acuity. He can tell the others are relaxing towards sleep, maybe assuming that he is too. Bucky is focusing on the monitors in her room, hoping to hear any tell tale change that would signal her awakening and allow him back into the room. He almost misses the increased beeping of the monitor as Wade and Logan yawn, startling Steve, but then a buzzer goes off further down the hall before some staff go rushing by and Bucky pushes up and follows them into the room, standing back to look at her. 

She’s scared, her eyes are rolling around in fear and she moves away from every touch. Her eyes land on him and she blinks then looks to the attendant that is talking to her. She looks back at him and takes a deep breath and nods to the attendant. The swarm of people around her increases as leads are removed, vitals checked and noted. When the medical personnel move off she is alone with her four saviours. She looks calmly at all of them in turn, seeming less upset looking from Bucky to Steve, but her agitation grows as she sees Logan and Wade. She takes a deep breathe then huffs out “Well it feels like we already had the orgy, but you’re all dressed so I guess it hasn’t started yet.”

Wade claps and cheers and thanks god his ‘angel’ is back. Steve blushes furiously, Logan grunts and Bucky smirks a bit. It doesn’t surprise him that she is sassy. He is rather relieved that she is in good spirits. As if on queue Nick Fury steps into the room and her machines start screaming with the speeding of her heart. All four men step towards the bed and the woman defensively as Fury holds out a hand in a calming motion. That eerie calm sensation is settling over him again and Bucky isn’t sure that he minds it at all.

“Woah there gentlemen. I’m here for the same reason that you are because she’s awake.” He nods towards the bed and looks at the woman. “Good morning Miss Y/L/N. You gave us quite the scare. Not many people have kicked Wolverine in the balls and lived to tell about it.”

Logan snickers and Bucky thinks the claw thing and the sideburns are explained by that name, Wolverine. It’s a lot to go through for a code name though. Wade is oddly silent, leaning in a corner and watching Fury like a hawk. Steve is moving his gaze back and forth from everyone and Bucky wonders if his neck is going to get sore when the woman speaks.

“James,” she gasps and Bucky’s heart leaps that she’s said his name. He barely has time to wonder how she knows it when he realizes that she is looking at Logan/Wolverine who is moving closer to the bed to take the hand she is holding out. She grasps his hand and he nods to her. “Sorry.”

Logan shakes his head. “Don’t be. I shouldn’ta snuck up on you. Ladies should never be sorry for defending themselves.”

“She’s doing it again,” Steve murmurs and Bucky nods at him. Fury nods along with Logan and Wade.  
“The peacekeeper is a lovely woman. She exudes calm and tranquillity at will. This ability kicks in automatically in times of great stress or dire physical trauma. So far she has never killed anyone with her abilities. However, she did manage to put someone into such a state that he ceased being able to breathe on his own. He’s resting comfortably in a care home in a permanent vegetative state,” Fury finishes with a note of satisfaction. Bucky isn’t sure if the man is proud of what she has done, how she has done it or possibly why. Either way, it is an effective threat and warning.

The woman lies there with her eyes closed and Bucky takes her hand out of habit. She opens her eyes and looks at him, a glint of something in her eyes. She looks at Fury and then at everyone else. 

“The man holding your hand is Sergeant James Buchanan Barnes, his blonde friend here is Steven Grant Rogers or Captain America. You were tasked with observing Deadpool also known as Wade Wilson when you were intercepted by Logan here, also known as Wolverine and formerly James Howlett. Everyone all caught up?”

“She’s an agent? Fury why didn't anyone tell us there were other agents on the op,” demands Steve. He glares at Fury as does Logan and even Wade perks up. Bucky looks to her as she squeezes his hand and shakes her head mouthing no.

“She was sent in deep cover, surveil and report. You didn't need to know she was there because keeping her cover intact was more important. She’s the reason that you had a target to detain that day. Our only failure seems to have been not anticipating a rabid Wolverine.” Fury turns and points his glare from Steve to Logan at this. Logan snarls and Wade barks out a laugh.

“All three of them for me? Surely Xavier told you I’m not a joiner.”

“We’re not recruiting, we are protecting. Your inability to stop slicing people up has made you a liability Mr. Wilson. It was decided that bringing you in off the streets for a bit was a good idea before someone else picked you up and puréed you waiting to see how little of you it takes to make a new Wade,” related Fury in a bored tone as he looked at his hand. To Bucky, it looked like Fury was judging how well his glove fit. He looked at Wade, the hyper-verbal man now silent and looking slightly on edge. Bucky wasn’t sure if it was the idea of being chopped up into teeny tiny pieces or the way Fury was behaving or if the fact that he was being taken off the streets was keeping him quiet. 

“So I fucked up an op, blew her cover. Now what?”

Fury turned and looked over Logan and took a quick breath before he simply stated, “Now she gets reassigned. After she recovers of course.” His gaze crosses all the men and lands on Bucky before Fury blinks and looks at her. She’s shaking her head.

“I never meant to fail you, sir,” she whimpers as Fury steps towards her. Bucky feels Steve’s arm block his path as he tries to stop Fury from; well Bucky just wants to protect her. Fury isn’t menacing her, infact he looks quite sad, but she's not happy and Bucky can't stand that.

“This falls under ‘act of God’ agent. No one could have seen it coming in time to stop it.”

She nods at him and looks at her lap. He takes her hand in his and she looks back up at him. “It’s been discussed and the feeling is that the former Avengers tower and S.H.I.E.L.D training facility is the best place for you to recover and await reassignment. I’ve been assured that Mr. Wilson and Logan can have accommodation there too if they choose.”

Bucky watches as she relaxes back against the bed as Fury speaks, grateful that she's calmer and that there will be some time for him to get to know her better. He and Steve are already living and working at the tower, at the very least Bucky knows that he will be able to get to know her and see her for a month or two before she might disappear out of his life. 

For the first time in he wasn’t quite certain how long, Bucky wants to get to know someone else. He wants to talk to someone; someone who isn’t employed to help him and who isn’t Steve. Bucky knows that Steve will get bent out of shape about this, but he also knows secretly Steve will be thrilled and will be beyond willing to throw Bucky right at her if he thought it would get Buck closer to or right back to his ‘old’ self. Steve means well but when it comes to how he deals with getting ‘his Bucky’ back, he's predictable as all hell.

None of that really matters to Bucky, he's far more interested in her. He wanted to see her smile. He wants to hear her laugh. He wants to hold her hand while she holds his. He's quite interested in her, in why her screams brought him to her side and how everything about her kept him there. The calming effect was nice and even interesting but he was focused on her.


	3. Christmas, Bucky Please Come Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You've been with Bucky a while now, as usual work gets in the way of the Holidays but the Contingent shows up to keep you company as you match make for Sam.

There were only five people in the room and even still Sam looked less than pleased. He was dressed head to toe in red, but only the hat had white fur trim. The belt you were handing him was green and covered in bells. He groaned loudly when he took it from you. Poor Sam had lost the arm wrestling competition and had ended up being the dedicated Santa spirit for the tower’s Christmas party. It was slightly unfair, Tony had used his suit arm and well Vision was able to phase, Wanda could use magic and there was no beating the rest of the team. Scott just shrunk and used his tricks to win, Wade hadn’t participated because he couldn't wear the beard without his mask and Tony insisted that the party Santa show his face. 

Logan hadn’t participated either. Most people were quite happy to have him in attendance but they didn't want to do anything to make him mad. Something Logan used to his advantage at every opportunity. That was probably why Wade had brought him along. Sam looked dejected in his festive attire and you felt just a smidge sorry for him, but not so sorry that you were willing to let him off the hook. The hook had been three weeks in the making and had a lot to do with Sam’s inability to approach a certain lady for a date. Said lady had admitted a Santa fetish to you, and Tony’s party seemed like the best way to work out both of their attractions.

You were a foul mouthed romantic and you had spent months helping Steve to a happy place with Sharon. Technically Natasha got the official credit for hooking the couple up, but Steve had turned to you for romantic advice and you had tried your best to help. Bucky later admitted that it was your selfless advice to Steve and Steve’s endless lobbying, that had made him decide to give dating you a shot. That and your incredible ass. 

In the intervening months, since you’d been injured by Logan and his knife, you had managed to become good friends with most of the Avengers, although you didn't see much of Bruce or Thor. Sam was the last single man, and as such everyone had taken an interest in vetting and setting him up with someone right. Sam was a good guy and even though he had a big heart and a loud personality, he was shy and careful with his heart. When you had found out he liked that certain woman, you had done your best to get her to be around more. 

From Tony’s parties, to movie nights, you had befriended her and brought her around so that people could get to know her and so Sam could see her and have opportunities to talk to her and potentially ask her out. Six months later and it was still just heavy flirting so you had decided to up the ante. Sam Wilson as Santa was going to send her over the edge. She’d want to jingle his bells and if that didn't happen then you were going to retire your matchmaker card and live happily as someone who could survive making Bucky happy for the rest of your life. No one believed you for a second, except maybe Bucky. You suspected he might be hoping you would fail so that he would have your undivided attention. Not that Bucky didn't have that most of the time, he did. He just wanted more, which you were glad of, but you encouraged him to have other interests besides yourself, to be well rounded. He was getting tired of that argument but he was also aware that other people supported that point of view, including Steve, Natasha, Logan, Wade and his counsellors and therapists.

Bucky and Steve were currently out on a mission and you were not at all pleased at the idea of spending your Christmas without your man. You had company, to take your mind off of it, but that didn't change the fact you would have like to have spent your first Christmas together. Bucky had gotten your ‘brothers’ Logan and Wade, as he called them, to come in and keep an eye on you for the holidays. Logan was the first to arrive and Wade had come with Vanessa. You were happy to have them and everyone was making jokes about the Canadian Contingent, but the guys and Vanessa were more than helpful in getting your plan for Sam off the ground tonight. You finished straightening the cap on Sam’s head as Vanessa entered the room with Aunt May in tow. Tony had found Peter Parker when the business with the Accords went down and Aunt May had been a huge hit with pretty much everyone in the Avengers and she was always a great one to have at the parties.

She walked in and as soon as she saw Sam she lit up. “Oh my god, look at Santa! Those dimples, that smile. I could eat him right up.”

Sam’s grin from seeing her widened as he heard her words. He cut his eyes to you and arched a brow. “I didn't put her up to that.’ you said with a shrug. Sam turned to her and she gave him a big hug. 

The general murmurs about how Aunt May looked far too young to be an Aunt went around and Logan just grunted. He liked May just fine, but he wasn’t a hugger or interested in making small talk with most people. To keep himself busy he was mixing drinks. He handed you a rum and coke, heavy on the rum as he liked it that way himself, and he went to get a beer for Wade and wine for Vanessa. Wade watched you knock back your drink, then announced with an exaggerated whine that you were about to get handsy. You knew he was only whining because you were too far away to get handsy with him. Within seconds people’s text alerts were going off and a minute or two later your phone buzzed with a text from Bucky who told you to enjoy your rum and cokes.

You were known for two party things, being able to hold your liquor and your behaviour related to what you were drinking. Rum and coke was handsy, tequila was affectionate, vodka was sleepy unless you mixed it with tequila then it was pukey. Wine made you argumentative, whiskey and scotch made you loud, gin made you talkative and people had gotten bored after that so no one kept track of beer, brandy, cognac, jagermeister, sake, and any other aperitif that existed. Occasionally people said that it should all be catalogued, but no one really had the inclination to do it and you were glad. You didn’t feel like trying ever liquor in the world just to know how it might affect you.

Logan passed out the drinks and May went off with Sam, making sure he would get to the party on time and be in place for the arrival of the object of his affections. As he walked away you pinched his ass and he howled like he’d been shot. “Handsy my ass!” he hissed as he stalked off rubbing the area. Everyone else giggled, the texts had gone out he should have been on alert. As it was Wade was waving his ass in the air, hoping to attract some handsy his way as Vanessa laughed, shook her head and leaned over his back to whisper in his ear. You were trying to formulate a way to make sure that Santa slayed tonight as Logan handed you another rum and coke.

“You’re not going to let him alone are you?” he grumbled.

“I’ve let him alone for 6 months and he hasn’t gotten any closer to kissing her. If I have to I’ll become mistletoe and hover over his head all night to get the job done.” Logan shook his head and chuckled. He knew you were serious and he knew that come hell or high water Sam was going to kiss that woman before the night was through. He linked his arm with yours and led you down to the party. When you arrived people were smiling and talking and Sam was sitting in the giant Santa throne Tony had installed. It had Tony’s initials on it, since he had played Santa for many years himself, but he had been more than willing to let the Santa job go to Sam this year, as he had foisted it on Bucky the previous year and had a delightful time relishing Bucky’s uncomfortable way with the women and men. You sort of regretted not bing there for it, not knowing if you would have gotten drunk or brave enough to sit on his lap that year. 

You knew that it had been a good party from the recordings you had seen and the stories everyone told. Even Bucky had admitted to enjoying his time in the suit. Currently Sam was smiling, all dimples and teeth. People were practically swarming him, he exuded good cheer even without the beard. As if on cue Tony approached you.

“What happened to the beard?”

“It hides the dimples,” you and Logan replied in unison. 

“Jinx you owe me a coke,” you smirked at him as he handed you another drink. Tony raised his eyebrows and shook his head with a smirk.

“Having a good time already I see.” Tony wiggled his eyebrows at you and you grabbed him and gave him a big kiss on the lips, “Also into the tequila I see.” He laughed and broke away from you.

Logan shrugged, “Keeps the sexual assault claims down right?”

“C’mon boys, let’s mingle!” You grabbed each man’s hand and headed towards where Sam and the others were talking with the guests. You were a little buzzed but you didn’t let that deter you from keeping an eye on the clock. Sam’s love interest was set to arrive in about ten minutes, something you had neglected to tell him so that he wouldn't get too nervous before she arrived. Arrangements had been made to get Sam and this woman together in the best interests of keeping Sam on a some what less erratic keel. Since he had met her, Sam had been distracted and people were worried. Either something good would happen or hopefully the two of them would go their separate ways and the team would stop worrying about Sam. By extension you could stop worrying about all of them.

You were always worried when the team went out, more so when you didn’t go and even more so when Bucky was out there alone. He was with Steve this time, and you sere certain neither would come back without the other. As much as you knew that you also understood neither one was Wade’s level of indestructible, and until they were back here you would worry. Everyone was aware of this about you, and that was why Logan was feeding you drinks. The slogan was ‘keep her warm and fuzzy’, and you had heard it passed between the Canadian Contingent and the Avengers on several occasions. The four men had a vested interest in keeping an eye on you, they all cared about you for longer then you had been a part of the team, but the rest of the team had taken on the though as if it meant equally as much to them and you were always amazed by that.

So to repay their kindness and generosity you did whatever you could for them. That included shamelessly meddling in their personal lives, with their full consent. You were a lot of things, but it was far easier to help someone with a relationship if they were aware of what you were doing and being honest with you about what they wanted. So far the only failure had been Tony and Pepper. Tony insisted on taking the brunt of that guilt on himself. He admitted to not following suggestions and basically letting her go and not trying because he felt he had nothing to offer her and he needed to save his friends. You were still working on building his confidence up ad pulling away his weird belief that he was getting al his friends killed. You still talked to Pepper too, but right now they were too far apart to know if they could come back together or if they really wanted to try again. Each had hope and serious reservations about the other and you knew that only time would tell.

In the mean time you had closed in on Sam just in time for the lady in question to enter the party. She had dressed to impress and several remarks were made and a low whistle broke from Sam’s lips when he saw her for himself. Sam was frozen in his chair with an appreciative look on his face as he watched her move closer to him. You took her arm and steered her into his lap, whispering that she should definitely go for it, as you stepped away and she sat down.

For the life of him Sam couldn't contain his smile and it looked as if he was blushing when she ran her hand down his shirt and said something about his delicious dimples and heart warming smile. She took the lead and leaned into his ear, telling him what you hoped was the same thing that she had told you a few weeks prior. You wanted everyone else to have a merry holiday season, especially since you were not having the merriest one that you could have had. 

You heard Sam exclaim “Seriously?” and the party broke into a raucous cheer as the two kissed. You were satisfied that your job was done as you rounded the chair and nabbed the hat off Sam’s head and placed it on your own. For his part Sam didn’t notice, but Wade stole the hat from you as soon as you approached.

“It goes better with my outfit,” he said as he motioned to his suit and strutted away. Vanessa smiled at you and shrugged. He wasn’t wrong and you both knew it. Wade made his way through the crowd with a mistletoe as you settled onto Logan’s lap and drank some more tequila and cokes. No one paid you much mind, and you got to watch the new couple dance for a bit before stealing away for the evening. You were sure at some point Wade and Vanessa would venture off as well. You ran your hands through Logan’s hair, listening to him make a noise that was similar to a purr. That was why he had come for Christmas. To spend it with someone who cared, even if it was just you and you were someone else’s. Logan needed friends and he needed to feel important, like everyone else. 

The first time you met he had tried to kill you, shortly after that Logan had sworn he owed you a debt and in the name of the debt you had told him he owed you any holiday you asked for anytime you asked. He had given you a hard look but agreed with a small smile. You knew he was a solitary man, and that left to his own devices he would disappear into the world and hide away. It seemed to you that he was deeply unhappy, and conflicted. You had a type indeed. 

The similarities between Bucky, Logan, Steve and Wade were numerous. Your effect on all these men was constant and soothing. They enjoyed being around you and always came back for more of the peace that you provided. It was your gift and it kept people coming back into your life. Your way with others and the way you could affect them made people friends and that was something that wasn’t alien to you. If anything, you had too many of them and you sometimes would prefer far less. 

As you contemplated what people considered your power you drank and snuggled into Logan. At some point you must have fallen asleep and woke to find yourself being carried in Logan’s arms. You looked up at him and he grunted. 

“Did you skewer me again?”You ventured.

“Does it hurt?”

“No.”

“You’re just drunk sweetheart. I’m taking you to bed, nothing more.”

“Merry Christmas Logan. I’m so glad I know you.” You said as you hugged his neck and planted a kiss in his hair.

“Merry Christmas sweetheart. I’m glad to know you too.” He gruffed. You fell asleep again and Logan put you into bed beside him. Shortly after that Wade came in with a passed out Vanessa. As usual Wade was talked endlessly and woke everyone ups. Unable to cope with the annoying and mouthy merc, everyone got up and made Wade repent his actions. Once Wade was subdued everyone went back to sleep.

******************************************************************************************************************************* 

It was 5 am Christmas morning when Bucky walked into the room with the sign that read Canadian Contingent on it, to find you snuggling with Logan and Vanessa. Wade was tied down quite intricately to one side of the bed and he had been gagged. Bucky smiled to himself, recognising your rope work, the gag was now loose around Wade’s neck but didn’t look like something you would have done. Bucky figured it had been Logan, or less likely it might have been Vanessa. She seemed to like Wade’s prattling though, Bucky wasn’t sure why. 

Love was strange he thought as he looked at you in the Santa hat you had taken back from Wade. You were certainly different from anyone he had known before and he was so happy to know you. Bucky had practically dragged Steve back here on foot, just to keep his promise to you. Steve had called him insane and cursed him several times that night, but they were back and Bucky was incredibly relieved that he could do something so small for you. He might never hear the end of it from Steve, but it was worth it.

Bucky grabbed your shins and pulled you down the bed towards him. You didn't stir but Logan opened an eye and cocked an eyebrow at him. Bucky nodded at him and mouthed thanks to which Logan nodded before he rolled over and went back to sleep. Bucky got you half way down the bed and flipped you up, over his shoulder. He turned and started back to his room after closing the door to give the others their privacy. He patted your ass and smiled to himself, you were waiting for him with your friends, as you always did.

You woke up feeling a cool heavy arm along your side and a firm hand on your ass. From your current vantage point you had a great view of a very familiar ass and you grabbed it before you questioned, “Bucky?”

His chuckle rolled through you and you giggled as his and patted your butt. “Maybe you could hold off on clawing through my pants until I get you in the room darling?”

You were gripping onto his buns firmly, doing your best to make sure that he was real and there as he had promised to be. He had made it home for Christmas and you were ecstatic. He got you into his room and laid you down on the bed, looking down at you with such an intense and loving look that you reached out and begged him to come to you. He stripped off his tactical clothes and then took off your clothes. He stopped and surveyed your previously hidden gift to him. Your underwear was just a few well placed ribbons, and Bucky had never been more into gifts then he was at that moment.

“Merry Christmas baby,” you cooed as he crawled over you and a planted a frantic kiss on your lips. You wrapped yourself around him as he licked his lips and made for the first bow he saw when the kiss broke.


End file.
